Metaphoric communication as change leadership action: A study of root metaphors used by change leaders in Japan

Abstract

This article uses a Japanese multinational corporation (MNC) as an example to explore how and why leaders figuratively communicate in organizations. The prior studies generally overlook the impacts of leaders’ metaphoric communication on the members’ sense-making processes. This study advances it by building grounded explanations of the research question and draws the following conclusions. First, the root metaphors of top management, such as the “leader as an authentic and adaptive risk-taker,” may create a framing effect on organizational members’ generative way of understanding change processes. Second, the metaphor of the “leader as a victim of change ambivalence” does not necessarily evoke members’ sympathy in the early stage of change. Third, change leaders can effectively use metaphors by aligning them with congruent organizational discourses.